OS X Mountain Lion Bible

Working with Reminders

We all have lots of things to do, and keeping track of them can be difficult, especially as we move from computer to mobile device and back. Addressing that issue is the rationale for the Reminders application, which runs on iOS devices such as the iPhone and iPad, as well as on Macs running OS X Mountain Lion. Plus, it can sync with Microsoft Exchange's and Google Calendars' to-do lists, making your tasks available on other devices. (You set up Reminders access for these accounts on the Mail, Contacts & Calendars system preference, as explained in Chapter 27.)

Because tasks are handled through online accounts, changes made to the task in any computer or device that can edit the task are reflected on all other computers and devices that have access to that task. Of course, there may be a delay in the syncing across all your devices based on the current Internet connection.

New Feature

Formerly handled by iCal in previous OS X versions, tasks are now handled in the Reminders application in OS X Mountain Lion.

The Reminders application is simple. Its Sidebar contains a list of your various accounts, as Figure 20.6 shows. Click an account to see the current tasks for that account, click the + icon pop-up menu at the bottom of the Reminders application window to choose an account, or swipe sideways with two fingers to move among the accounts. The current account's tasks appear in the pane at right.

You can hide the Sidebar by choosing View⇒Hide Sidebar, by pressing ...